Portland Trail Blazers: 3 guards for Anfernee Simons to emulate

3. Mike Conley

Anfernee Simons has been the definition of a one-trick pony so far in his career. If he’s not launching from deep, he really poses no threat to the defense.

Mike Conley is one of the most underrated players in the entire league. He’s not as flashy off the bounce as Kyrie Irving, he’s not a legendary sniper like Stephen Curry, nor is he an athletic specimen like Russell Westbrook. But Conley’s constructed a hell of a career with smart, fundamental ballhandling and a trademark floater that allows him to score over nearly any shot blocker in the league.

Currently, despite his elite springs, Simons is simply too lean to challenge NBA bigs in the paint. This mismatch in size has developed a level of hesitation that is preventing Ant from becoming a more multifaceted threat on offense.

Since he knows he won’t be able to finish at the rim, he doesn’t drive. Since he doesn’t drive, the defense can simply plant on the perimeter when he has the ball. Since the defense doesn’t have to worry about him attacking the paint, they don’t have to help. Since the defense doesn’t have to help, Simons can’t create opportunities for his teammates.

The few times Ant does pound the rock, he displays a tight handle of the ball. The problem is that he uses his dribble to move laterally rather than towards the rim. Mike Conley is a master at using sleight of hand dribbles to snake his way into the paint. Once he’s there, it’s almost always a teardrop shot that drops through the rim, barely disturbing the net on the way down.

Here, Conley takes the screen from Rudy Gobert and hesitates around the free throw line to keep Serge Ibaka pinned to the paint and Patrick Beverley at his back. Once Ibaka plants near the restricted area, Conley continues his drive and finishes with a picture-perfect teardrop over the reach of the shot blocker.

With a screen, a few good jab steps, and four precise dribbles, Conley was able to beat two of the best defenders in the league.

Simons needs to emulate this part of Conley’s game to become a more versatile offensive threat. Once he’s able to start consistently scoring inside, he’ll find that he’ll have a lot more open looks behind the arc where he can really do some damage.